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NFL news of October 13, 2002

Photo: Tony Dejack | Associated Press

Tim Couch doesn’t understand that there’s no crying in football. No whining, either. Not if you want to remain a starting quarterback in the NFL. Particularly in a place like Cleveland, where fans are proud to bark and sit in the Dawg Pound and where Bill Belichick needed a hefty police escort to safely leave the field following a loss to the Patriots in 1993.

Couch, apparently a touchy-feely quarterback—a warm and fuzzy Kentuckian with deep emotions and very thin skin—got all teary-eyed after some fans at Cleveland Stadium cheered when he was injured in last week’s 26-21 loss to the Baltimore Ravens.

The quarterback… said he overreacted.

“If you’re the quarterback of an NFL team, that kind of stuff is going to happen to you,” he said. “Every quarterback from Dan Marino to John Elway to everybody you want to name has gone through being booed out of the stadium. It’s something that happens to quarterbacks. You’re the most visible guy on the field. I’ve got to learn how to control my emotions a little better.”

That may sound good, but it’s probably too little, too late. The fans saw the tears. They heard his comments. They’ve also suffered through his performance and reveled in the play of backup Kelly Holcomb, who came in when Couch was injured.